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Clubs/Tutoring

East Middle School offers all students many before and after school programs that will help encourage their learning experience. Programs range from academic intervention, enrichment, leadership, and service to fun, enriching clubs that will expand their horizons. By offering these extras, the East Middle School staff feels everyone will have an experience that will be beneficial and lead our students to growth and success. We place special emphasis on homework help and tutoring opportunities for at-risk students.

National Junior Honor Society

Teacher Sponsors: Susie Young, Lee Ann Black, and Jennifer Ray

National Junior Honor Society is for 8th graders who have a minimum cumulative GPA of 3.5 from their 6th and 7th grade school year. While the primary criteria for an invitation is academic, the organization emphasizes service, leadership, citizenship and character. Students are invited to join at the end of 7th grade and inducted during a ceremony held either during the spring of 7th grade or the beginning of their 8th grade year.

Since serving others is an important component of NJHS membership, our club expects members to complete 10 hours of community service per year. We also have an annual fundraiser for the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society of Tennessee. This year NJHS also raised money and donated it to Red Cross to help hurricane victims.

NJHS STUDENT EXPECTATIONS

GRADE POINT AVERAGE - You will be expected to keep your GPA at a minimum of 3.5 to remain a member of the club. The first quarter your GPA drops below 3.5, you will be on probation and given the chance to raise it the next quarter. If, after the next quarter, your average stays below 3.5, you will be dismissed from the club.

COMMUNITY SERVICE: You will be expected to complete, at the minimum, 10 hours of community service before spring break. There are several ways you may earn this: tutoring in the library after school, helping gather recycling, volunteering through your church, helping at pre-approved events at the elementary schools, or working at a food bank, soup kitchen, etc. Community service may not be something for which you are paid or something you do for a family member.

CHARACTER: It is expected that you will make good decisions at school and outside of school and show good character in all situations. Members who fall below the standards that were the basis of their selection in areas of scholarship, service or character shall be promptly warned by a chapter advisor and given a reasonable amount of time to correct the deficiency. Exemplary character is of utmost importance to our NJHS chapter. Any flagrant violation of school rules may result in immediate dismissal.

MEETINGS : It is expected that you will attend all meetings before, during or after school. If you know in advance you are going to miss a meeting, notify an advisor and receive an excused absence. If you are sick or not at school on meeting day, you will be excused. All other excused absences will be at the discretion of the advisors. You must attend 70% of scheduled meetings to remain a member of the club.

FLAG DUTY: It is the responsibility of NJHS to raise and lower the flag daily. You will not earn service hours for this job; however, it is expected that every member will help with this activity. There will be a schedule on which every member will sign up.

Video Production & EMS Live

Teacher Sponsor: Alisha Rader

Video Production serves as a 7th and 8th Grade related arts class. Students in this class are also featured in the EMS Live morning news show. The live news broadcast includes all of the EMS essential information streamed through the whole school three times per week via a private YouTube channel.

Students in this course will be introduced to video storytelling, editing, and camera skills. They will learn how to produce, script, storyboard, shoot and edit interviews, public service announcements, commercials and more. In addition to learning the nuts and bolts of filming, students will learn to exercise judgement, film etiquette, and video production protocol. Video Production will be a project oriented, technology based course.

Students will also learn to edit video on an iMac using Final Cut Pro X, operate the TriCaster, operate a sound mixer board, use a graphics computer to send graphics over our live news feed, and so much more as part of our live news broadcast.

Students may apply for Video Production class beginning in their 7th Grade year.

As a general rule, only students that take Video Production as a related arts class may participate in the early morning broadcast, though certain exceptions may be made upon teacher discretion.

Students enrolled in Video Production will require additional permission forms as part of their application due to the nature of the class.

In addition, students are working with professional-grade equipment; therefore, behavior is of the utmost importance. Inappropriate behavior will be addressed on a case-by-case individual basis; however, repeated major offenses could result in removal from EMS Live and/or the course.

Students in Video Production arrive between 7:20 and 7:30 on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday to prepare for the broadcast that morning. Students that are placed in these positions are expected to be in attendance.

7th Grade begins early morning broadcasts typically after Fall Break. This allows time for students to learn the necessary skills and equipment to be successful.

Lego League

Teacher Sponsor: Mrs. Arnold

Lego League is a STEM-based program that challenges students to work together as a team and collaborate with community volunteers to solve problems. Students have an opportunity to participate in Lego League enrichment during the first semester and possibly part of the 3 quarter.

Students must display teamwork and integrity associated with the core values of Lego league.

Core values focus on the ability to work with others and compete for fun while displaying gracious professionalism and coopertition*.

Students are challenged in 3 main areas: robot design, core values, and a project-based task.

Students will also learn coding and programming skills.

Those coding skills will be used in a robotics performance component in which students code a robot to perform missions and points are awarded for success.

*The word coopertition is not misspelled. It is a part of the Lego League vocabulary.

7th Grade Math Team

7th Grade Teacher Sponsor: Mr. Lynch

Our team is open to any current 7th grade student who is interested in learning more and having fun with math. We meet on Wednesday afternoons from 3:15-4:15 in Mr. Lynch’s room. Snacks and supplies are provided, but please bring an inquisitive mind and willing attitude.

Our first contest every year is the Chapter MATHCOUNTS competition in February at UTSI. We use the MATHCOUNTS program as our framework. Other contests are scheduled throughout the year. Team members are selected through a series of competition tests. Some team members prefer not to compete in contests and just come to learn more about math and/or hang-out (and that’s great!).

8th Grade Math Team

8th Grade Teacher Sponsor: Mr. Stout

Any 8th Grade student interested in Math Team may participate. No sign-up is required. No materials are needed except a pencil and a smile.

7th Grade Math Team helps to prepare students for the 8th Grade Team, but it is not required to participate.

Math Team students choose two days per week, Monday through Friday, to stay after school and work Math problems with Mr. Stout. This allows students with extra-curricular activities to make their own schedules. Math problems selected by Mr. Stout help students prepare for upcoming competitions. Students are permitted to leave once they have finished their problems for the day. The time needed will vary depending on the student and skill for the week, ranging from 30 minutes to an hour. Any student unable to stay for two days will need to develop an alternate plan with Mr. Stout for that week.